(1) That the first priority and concern of all persons in the
coal mining industry must be the health and safety of its most
precious resource -- the miner;

(2) That in furtherance of this priority, the provisions of
article two of this chapter are designed to protect the health and
safety of this state's coal miners by requiring certain minimum
standards for, among other things, certain health and safety
technology used by each underground miner;

(3) That the proper implementation of this technology in West
Virginia's underground mines would benefit from the specialized
oversight of persons with experience and competence in coal mining,
coal mine health and safety and the expanding role of technology;
and

(4) That, in furtherance of provisions of this section, it is
the intent of the Legislature to create a permanent task force
which, on a continuous basis, shall evaluate and study issues
relating to the commercial availability and functional and
operational capability of existing and emerging technologies in
coal mine health and safety, as well as issues relating to the
implementation, compliance and enforcement of regulatory
requirements governing the technologies.

(a) The Mine Safety Technology Task Force is continued, and
commencing July 1, 2010, is a separate independent task force
within the Department of Commerce.

(b) The task force shall consist of seven voting members and
two ex officio, nonvoting members who are appointed as specified in
this section:

(1) The Governor shall appoint, by and with the advice and
consent of the Senate, three members to represent the viewpoint of
operators in this state. When these members are to be appointed,
the Governor shall request from the major trade association
representing operators in this state a list of three nominees for
each position on the task force. All nominees shall be persons
with special experience and competence in coal mine health and
safety. There shall be submitted with the list, a summary of the
qualifications of each nominee. For purposes of this subdivision,
the major trade association representing operators in this state is
that association which represents operators accounting for over one
half of the coal produced in mines in this state in the year prior
to the year in which the appointment is to be made.

(2) The Governor shall appoint, by and with the advice and
consent of the Senate, three members who can reasonably be expected
to represent the viewpoint of the working miners of this state. When members are to be appointed, the Governor shall request from
the major employee organization representing coal miners within
this state a list of three nominees for each position on the task
force. The highest ranking official within the major employee
organization representing coal miners within this state shall
submit a list of three nominees for each position on the board.
The nominees shall have a background in coal mine health and
safety.

(3) The Governor shall appoint, by and with the advice and
consent of the Senate, one certified mine safety professional from
the College of Engineering and Mineral Resources at West Virginia
University;

(4) The Health and Safety Administrator, pursuant to section
six, article six of this chapter, shall serve as a member of the
task force as an ex officio, nonvoting member; and

(5) The Director of the Office of Miner's Health, Safety and
Training or his or her designee, shall serve as an ex officio,
nonvoting member.

(c) Each appointed member of the task force shall serve at the
will and pleasure of the Governor.

(d) Whenever a vacancy on the task force occurs, nominations
and appointments shall be made in the manner prescribed in this
section: Provided, That in the case of an appointment to fill a
vacancy, nominations of three persons for each vacancy shall be requested by and submitted to the Governor within thirty days after
the vacancy occurs by the major trade association or major employee
organization, if any, which nominated the person whose seat on the
task force is vacant.

(e) Each member, except ex officio members, of the task force
shall be paid the same compensation, and each member of the task
force shall be paid the same expense reimbursement, as is paid to
members of the Legislature for their interim duties as recommended
by the Citizens Legislative Compensation Commission and authorized
by law for each day or portion thereof engaged in the discharge of
official duties. In the event the expenses are paid by a third
party, the member shall not be reimbursed by the state. The
reimbursement shall be paid out of the State Treasury upon a
requisition upon the State Auditor, properly certified by the
Office of Miners' Health, Safety and Training. An employer shall
not prohibit a member of the task force from exercising leave of
absence from his or her place of employment in order to attend a
meeting of the task force or a meeting of a subcommittee of the
task force, or to prepare for a meeting of the task force, any
contract of employment to the contrary notwithstanding.

WVC 22 A- 11 - 3
§22A-11-3. Task force powers and duties.
(a) The task force shall provide technical and other
assistance to the office related to the implementation of the new
technological requirements set forth in the provisions of section
fifty-five, article two of this chapter, as amended and reenacted
during the regular session of the Legislature in 2006 and
requirements for other mine safety technologies.

(b) The task force, working in conjunction with the director,
shall continue to study issues regarding the commercial
availability, the functional and operational capability and the
implementation, compliance and enforcement of the following
protective equipment:

(1) Self-contained self-rescue devices, as provided in
subsection (f), section fifty-five, article two of this chapter;

(4) Market forces impacting the development of new
technologies, including issues regarding the costs of research and
development, regulatory certification and incentives designed to
stimulate the marketplace.

(d) On or before July 1 of each year, the task force shall
submit a report to the Governor and the board of Coal Mine Health
and Safety that shall include, but not be limited to:

(1) A comprehensive overview of issues regarding the
implementation of the new technological requirements set forth in
the provisions of section fifty-five, article two of this chapter,
or rules promulgated in accordance with the law;

(2) A summary of any emerging technological advances that
would improve coal mine health and safety;

(3) Recommendations, if any, for the enactment, repeal or
amendment of any statute which would enhance technological
advancement in coal mine health and safety; and

(4) Any other information the task force considers
appropriate.

(e) In performing its duties, the task force shall, where possible, consult with, among others, mine engineering and mine
safety experts, radiocommunication and telemetry experts and
relevant state and federal regulatory personnel.

(f) Appropriations to the task force commission and to
effectuate the purposes of this article shall be made to one or
more budget accounts established for that purpose.

(g) The task force shall annually compile a proposed list of
approved innovative mine safety technologies and transmit the list
to the Director of the Office of Miners' Health, Safety and
Training as provided in section four, article thirteen-BB, chapter
eleven of this code. The list shall be approved by unanimous vote
of the task force.

WVC 22 A- 11 - 4
§22A-11-4. Approval of devices.
Prior to approving any protective equipment or device that has
been evaluated by the task force pursuant to the provisions of
subsection (b), section three of this article, the director shall
consult with the task force and review any applicable written
reports issued by the task force and the findings set forth in the
reports and shall consider the findings in making any approval
determination.

Note: WV Code updated with legislation passed through the 2015 Regular Session
The WV Code Online is an unofficial copy of the annotated WV Code, provided as a convenience. It has NOT been edited for publication, and is not in any way official or authoritative.